


Mars was the target planet - Earth was the mistake ...

by ReprobateGamer



Category: WTF Evolution (Tumblr)
Genre: Alien/Human Relationships, Aliens, Gen, Inspired By Tumblr, Tumblr Prompt, more than a drabble, on a galactic scale, what if earth is a death world, what if mars is where life should have started
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-05
Updated: 2019-02-05
Packaged: 2019-10-22 21:57:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17670866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReprobateGamer/pseuds/ReprobateGamer
Summary: Seen the tumblr prompts for what if Earth is a death world and what if humans are actually stronger/weirder than the bulk of other galactic life.Couldn't resist jotting something down, though it became a little less impersonal as I wrote it





	Mars was the target planet - Earth was the mistake ...

It was yet to be seen if it was a galactic level mistake

 

When Those That Came First arose from their primeval existence and began to reach for the stars, their reptilian processes served them well as they moved from desert wilderness to the cold depths of space. With the universe at a young age, the first of those interplanetary explorers came across other cultures that had flourished in desert climes, and too came across death worlds of endless oceans and mountainous heights where lifeforms just could not flourish.

Moving beyond their local systems though, Those That Came First, their species name now lost in long aeons, came to realise that they were alone in the cosmos - whatever happenstance had led to their evolution was not replicated anywhere else. But Those That Came First pushed the boundaries of their science, uncovering fundamentals of existence, and coming across barriers that could not be breached.

Quantum entanglement allowed for the instantaneous transfer of information at any distance but particular matter could not ever be transferred. Travel became ever more advanced and refined but the speed of light ultimately proved to be a maximum limit. Despite theoretical physics time and again finding ways that this boundary should be superseded, nothing physical could make the transition. Efforts to create wormholes, or to bend space time at best were doomed to failure and at worse became catastrophic incidents that remained constant warnings against further attempts.

Those That Came Before found they had hit their limits and coupled with the scarcity of life within the galaxy re-doubled their efforts into the genetic sciences. The successful transfer of consciousness from one body to another proved to be only partly successful - at some point, the living conscious mind could not accept any body which had not been it's original, whether that be organic or synthetic. Though life had proved to a rare commodity within the galaxy, planetary bodies with the right topography, atmosphere and chemical composition were more plentiful. Thus, Those That Came Before began to seed worlds to generate new life and expand their collective consciousness.

The barriers against faster than light travel and true immortality became cornerstones in all civilised races; a target, a challenge for all races to strive and overcame.

The seeding proved to be successful - generation ships took key personnel to core area's to oversee the seeding process in the different quadrants. A Quantum Entanglement Network was generated to allow for the monitoring of seed worlds, from the initial scans to first contact and uplift with the new species as they took their place amongst the races now known as the Seeders. Conflict was rare - the Seeders chose new life planets with care. Seeded races came with innate appreciation of their creators and any physical or intellectual differences served only to further progress made in all areas of science and culture.

It was in one corner of one quadrant that an initial scan identified what was just another world for seeding. A single star with a number of planets orbiting - some were gas giants and not suitable. Some were too close or too far but the fourth planet had the correct conditions, it's red dust and ice caps suitable for the seeding process.

 

But it was not to be as foreseen.

 

Whether a mistake in the launch vectors, an error in approach trajectory, an unforeseen gravitational anomaly or some other design by some ineffable force, the seeding ship came to rest not on the stable fourth planet but on the third, tempestuous, world. For whatever reason, the feedback scans of that landing were not received correctly, or not interpreted, or possibly ignored and the seeding process began.

It was some time later when the Seeders made a routine check on this ordinary system and found that life was flourishing on the third planet. But the life had manifested in what the Seeders recognised as evolutionary dead-ends, and not compatible with the galactic community. So the decision was made to oxygen bomb the planet and request a new seeding venture to the correct planet.

 

Time passed.

 

In what would continue to be a perfect storm of errors, the seeding request was not processed but records were generated to say a new seeding had impacted.

 

When the Quantum Network surveying that system began to report transmission on the electromagnetic spectrum, the Seeders finally returned their attention to the system. By this point, many systems had been seeding and it was a routine process to take the intelligent life and integrate them into the galactic community, by now long since sending generation ships across the voids to the other galaxies. The Seeders looked upon the fourth world and were dismayed to find it a dead world. But there was a clear and increasing spike in transmissions from the system. This was quickly traced to the third world.

With horror, the Seeders realised that life had thrived on the third world, despite the harsh conditions. The multiple climates and associated species had not manifested on any other world. No first contact protocol had been conceived for warm-blooded mammals breathing oxygen and with an omnivorous appetite. No escalation protocol that wouldn't remove the fourth planet as a still viable seeded planet.

All that was left was to monitor this world and react as its inhabitants began their first steps into space

 

It was yet to be seen if it was a galactic level mistake


End file.
